In terms of design, this is a nice spot and it is flavorful. From a balance standpoint, it needs tweaking, 4 mana flying lifelink if it only sits back is powerful, but it can also attack for 5 damage and gain 3 if you pay 2 mana.

Either the untapped bonus should +2/+2 or the mana cost of the ability should at least 1 or even 2 more, or the stats of this should be 1/1 instead. It is supremely powerful otherwise.

September 21, 2018
9:34 a.m.

I'm having a difficult time trying to explain why I dislike those abilities, and I think it's because its ability gives no real options on when to use it: after attacking, before damage is dealt is the correct time to activate it, and the only time you don't want to activate it, is if the opponent has an even larger flying threat.

It would be an interesting choice as a creature that gets weaker when attacking, but the "untap this" ability is better than vigilance: even Cryptic Command doesn't stop it from being a 5/5 flying lifelinking blocker.

September 21, 2018
11:38 a.m.

I don't think this makes sense regarding flavor in my opinion. By saying "a giant bat that's harmlessly sleeping in a belltower but can be woken up to be a very dangerous raptor" it makes me think that you are trying to go for a design that makes the creature able to attack and block if you wake it up by attacking its controller, like Slumbering Dragon or Guardian of the Ages.

If your flavor instead is that it is a strong creature that you don't want to attack into except the process of wanting to attack makes it weaker, but it can be rejuvenated with your blood... Then your design would be a great flavor fit.

But I don't think that is what you were intending here, right?

September 21, 2018
1:33 p.m.

Boza: making the bonus +2/+2 seems fine. Making it a 1/1 would make it too weak.

Funkydiscogod: as read above, I'll change the bonus. How about I give it hexproof while tapped, so being a 5/5 or a 2/2 hexprrof really makes a difference? I also had the idea to make the ability "[manacost], tap an untapped artifact you control: untap ~". This way, you have to go out of your way a little more as playing many artifacts in orzhov isn't the usual thing to do, while still being flavourful (tap the artifact = ring the bell). A life cost might still be necessary though.

MagicalHacker: this indeed isn't the intended flavour. Do you have an idea for the "slumbering dragon option" without having the card lose its bat flavour?

September 21, 2018
5:22 p.m.

"woken up to be very dangerous" seems to imply an ability that causes it to be a good blocker when blocking and a good attacker when attacking. Valakut Fireboar seems to have the perfect kind of ability for this: as long as it's not "woken up to be very dangerous", it's not much of a threat.

There are a few cards in black that increase power at the cost of toughness, like Nameless Inversion or Carrion Howler. You could make it a 2/5, that gets +3/-3 when it attacks, and keep the "5 toughness when its calm, 5 power when its angry" ability that I think you were going for.

September 23, 2018
6:20 a.m.

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